Built 2026-09-21 (21 September 2026)

Power Capacity and Utilisation by Country, 2024: Solar, Wind, Gas, Coal, Nuclear and Hydro

Ember's latest complete year of installed capacity data is 2024. This section ranks countries by installed capacity for 6 fuels, compares each with its own 2019 and 2014, and divides generation by capacity to show capacity factor: solar (China leads with 887 GW in 2024); wind (China leads with 521 GW in 2024); gas (the United States leads with 546 GW in 2024); coal (China leads with 1,173 GW in 2024); nuclear (the United States leads with 96.8 GW in 2024); hydro (China leads with 377 GW in 2024).

Key Facts, 2024

  • The latest complete Ember year of installed capacity data is 2024; countries are compared with their own 2019 and 2014.
  • World solar capacity was 1,880 GW in 2024, against 590 GW in 2019.
  • World wind capacity was 1,133 GW in 2024, against 623 GW in 2019.
  • World gas capacity was 2,037 GW in 2024, against 1,834 GW in 2019.
  • World coal capacity was 2,168 GW in 2024, against 2,061 GW in 2019.
  • World nuclear capacity was 407 GW in 2024, against 404 GW in 2019.
  • World hydro capacity was 1,277 GW in 2024, against 1,192 GW in 2019.
  • World solar capacity factor was 13.0% in 2024.
  • World wind capacity factor was 25.2% in 2024.
  • World gas capacity factor was 38.1% in 2024.
  • World coal capacity factor was 55.4% in 2024.
  • World nuclear capacity factor was 77.6% in 2024.
  • World hydro capacity factor was 39.6% in 2024.

The Capacity Pages

Ember, 2014 to 2024

World Capacity and Capacity Factor by Fuel, 2024

Ember World region, annual
World installed capacity by fuel in 2024 and 2019, world capacity factor in 2024, and the largest country for each fuel. Column headings sort the table.
FuelCapacity 2024Capacity 2019Capacity factor 2024Countries listedLargest countryIts capacity
Solar1,880 GW590 GW13.0%55China887 GW
Wind1,133 GW623 GW25.2%43China521 GW
Gas2,037 GW1,834 GW38.1%84United States546 GW
Coal2,168 GW2,061 GW55.4%50China1,173 GW
Nuclear407 GW404 GW77.6%27United States96.8 GW
Hydro1,277 GW1,192 GW39.6%83China377 GW

Capacity factor is generation divided by capacity times the hours in 2024, so a plant running flat out all year scores 100%. Countries with less than 1.00 GW of a fuel are not listed, and any factor above 100% (lower for solar and wind) is dropped as a data error. Every figure is Ember annual data for 2024.

Source: Ember (ember-energy.org), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Data as of 2024. Installed capacity and generation from Ember annual statistics, complete years.